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Coppermine

This feature documentary introduces us to the Copper Inuit of the Coronation Gulf region of Canada's Northwest Territories, one of the last aboriginal groups to be contacted by people from outside. When Doctor R.D. Martin arrived in Coppermine in 1929, he had to deal with one of the consequences of that contact: a full-blown tuberculosis epidemic.
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This feature documentary introduces us to the Copper Inuit of the Coronation Gulf region of Canada's Northwest Territories, one of the last aboriginal groups to be contacted by people from outside. When Doctor R.D. Martin arrived in Coppermine in 1929, he had to deal with one of the consequences of that contact: a full-blown tuberculosis epidemic.

Health and Medicine Indigenous Peoples in Canada (Inuit) All subjects
  • director
    Ray Harper
  • script
    Ray Harper
  • editing
    Ray Harper
  • producer
    Jerry Krepakevich
  • executive producer
    Graydon McCrea
  • cinematography
    James Jeffrey
  • sound
    Lindsay Bucknell
    Jerry Krepakevich
  • sound editing
    Paul Fafard
  • re-recording
    Paul Sharpe
    Bill Sheppard
    Jane Ludgate
  • narrator
    Lydia Slabyj
  • voice
    Bill Meilen
    André Roy
  • music
    Michael Becker
  • cast
    Glenn Beck
    Dave Pare

Education

Ages 14 to 17
School subjects
Ethics and Religious Culture - Religious Diversity/Heritage Geography - The Arctic Indigenous Studies - History/Politics Indigenous Studies - Issues and Contemporary Challenges
Is the story presented in the film considered a tragedy? Opinions should be supported by facts from the film. Research the career of Dr. Russell Martin, focussing on his time spent at Coppermine, NWT. Comment on Martin’s request for a sun lamp as symbolic of the Canadian government’s disregard for the Inuit. Develop an essay on the “Caucasian steamroller” that alters other cultures detrimentally. Comment on the missionaries’ battle for the souls of the Inuit.

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Coppermine
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